I just joined Sam's Club

[MasterBlaster]

No derail.

And they probably are a write off.

 

[The Branch Doctor]

I guess I'm weird cause I like both stores and prefer shopping at them over going to other places... except Sportsmans Warehouse that's my favorite store on the planet.

 

[top hopper]

I buy tons of Gatorade from Sams during the warmer months. And I do write it off as a business expense.

Anything I buy there is a business expense of some sort.

 

[Paul B]

Is there a difference?

location wise for me locally there are two costcos within a five minute drive, a new one is being built about 350 yards from my front door and I believe one or both of the other pre-existing ones are being closed. The nearest walmart to me would be about 15 minutes away attached to a mall.

I like the fact that I can shop earlier than the general public in Costco as I have a business membership (also $10 cheaper per annum membership fees).

IMHO around here there is a noticeable difference in the folks that shop Walmart vs those that shop Costco, generally speaking. Walmarts here are miles of aisle shelving packed with products at the cheapest possible price the corporation can charge and still make profit with a bunch of goobers in shitty blue smocks. Costco is miles of pallet racking packed with products at relatively low prices with cashiers at one end of the building.

The wife hits walmart here and there, as well as costco but we dont really buy a ton of stuff from either. I would say the basics from there are tissues, butt wipe, paper towel and now diapers Sometimes foodstuffs but we tend to buy smaller quantities more often from the grocery store across the street.

I like to make a fair price purchase but like the clients I want to serve, I dont want to spend my time looking for the absolutely cheapest deal in town. I do however get frustrated with the fact that we now have an entire closet full of paper products that will last between 3 to 5 months. I liked the days when you could buy 6 rolls of butt wipe and a box of tissues when you ran out. Buying 12 boxes of tissues and 188 rolls of butt wipe irks me. to save what? a couple bucks in the long run? heck, I put $100 in fuel through my truck every 4 to 6 days and I dont stoop to pick up pennies off the ground anymore either.

good thing the wife does most of the shopping around here I guess.

 

[squisher]

I can't stand the large stores and the crowds, mostly the ignorant crowds. I shop in Butcher Boys it's maybe 5,000sq/ft locally owned one single store. The service is excellent and the meat/produce is top quality and fresh. I don't have to park half a kilometre away and if I forgot something at the other end of the store no big deal to go get it. My time and sanity is worth more to me then any savings I may be missing out on. Also it's very conveniently located for me although walmart is only like three blocks away, I rarely to never enter those doors and when I do it's borderline a contact sport for me. Head down shoulders forward and out of my way because I want in and out.

 

[Old Monkey]

My wife went to check out CostCo again the other day. Every time prices on food go up we check out the options. The problem I find with trying to save money by buying at bulk discount stores is that I end up buying a lot of stuff I don't need because the prices are good. My wife says she can be more disciplined than me and is probably right. We are spending around $250 a week on food for the three of us. We buy organic meat and produce almost exclusively since Haley came along. Kids are more susceptible to pesticides and hormones in food and we have decided to err on the side of safety.

 

[vharrison]

That's the same one, Gigi. I'm less than a mile from there.

How cool is that? I loved that place. I have a friend, who works for Dr's Kramer and Traharne that still shops there. She loves the meat there. In fact, I bet the steak John and Ed had last night at the Gators was from there.

 

[vharrison]

My wife went to check out CostCo again the other day. Every time prices on food go up we check out the options. The problem I find with trying to save money by buying at bulk discount stores is that I end up buying a lot of stuff I don't need because the prices are good. My wife says she can be more disciplined than me and is probably right. We are spending around $250 a week on food for the three of us. We buy organic meat and produce almost exclusively since Haley came along. Kids are more susceptible to pesticides and hormones in food and we have decided to err on the side of safety.

Wow, 250$ for three people? WOW. That just sounds so high to me.

 

[SkwerI]

I went and took a walk-through there this afternoon, just to familiarize myself with the store a little bit. Almost everything a person could ever need is in there. The scariest part was the complete lack of any English speaking people. Oh well, I guess I'll just keep my head down and shoulders forward and not make eye contact with anyone. I hate feeling like a foreigner in my own hometown.

 

[Paul B]

I think we spend about $325 or so on groceries for the two of us monthly, cant wait to see what baby foods start to cost, we are looking into making our own stuff here and there, how hard is it to puree peas?

 

[JonnyHart]

Sam's Club is the place for diapers and baby formula. I save a small fortune there.

 

[Cobleskill]

Old Monkey,

I don't know what kind of farmer's market you have in your area but around here you could save some money there. I used to grow and market veggies and I can't beleive the prices in the stores. A few years back I planted a few thousand heads of cauliflower. We had a dry summer and it didn't head untill late Oct-Nov. It't too cold out to sell a lot in Nov. so I went to my small local grocery store and asked if they were interested. They said yeah, how much you want. I said I don't know what the wholesale rates are but just pay me what the usual rate is. They were selling it for $2.29. They paid me 40 cents a head. Wasn't that big of a deal as it was only a couple hundred head but needless to say they haven't got any more. It also shows what a small percentage the farmer gets and why you can get a better deal at a farmers market. You might be able to find a local source for organic meat also.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Yesterday I was there at 4:45 pm and there was no line at the check out. The cashier said the crowd was fixing to arrive, though. I bought a nice leather chair for $114.

 

[vharrison]

That is a nice chair!

 

[MasterBlaster]

Heck yea, and comfortable. I can't believe how low the price was.

 

[sotc]

cheap chinese cows

 

[TC3]

Are the drinkies & stuff really tax deductable ? How you do dat ???
On my tax table, you add up the work related stuff, divide by 10, multiply by .08 & take 50% of that number to line 268 where if the number is less than $10,000 you're out of luck !!! HAR !

I spend wayyy to much money at Costco. Everything looks so damn good & is such a deal.
I've come home the proud new owner of a complete set of the Audubon Society's books on rocks & gems & went, "Huh?"

Che, I remember the days of the Co-Op. Endless CHEESE ! Yummm !!!

 

[Newfie]

how hard is it to puree peas?

Not hard, but certainly more of a tax on your time than opening a jar. We fed both our boys the gerber, and they don't seem to have turned out retarded or malnourished.

 

[Stumper]

Mike, You are their father-How would you tell?

 

[Paul B]

they don't seem to have turned out retarded or malnourished.

Guess thats all I need to hear! hahaha